I am sad to say that I have participated in the "game of school" on numerous occassions. This entailed reading just enough to be able to answer questions or making compromises with teachers to lessen the workload. Of course, I wasn't the only person doing it as it was mostly a group effort. My friends and I knew exactly what we were doing so it wasn't on the same subconscious level described in the reading.
I think the game of school is a necessary part of the education system. It's when it becomes the education system that problems arise. Students need a small amount of leniency and it's to be expected that they won't perform at maximum capacity all of the time. With that being said, teachers need to recognize this and implement a learning regiment that takes this factor into account. The Game of School will always be present, but there are ways to alter it. Ways such as making classtime more engaging and not simply just "going through the motions". There must be effort of both sides by the teachers and the students.
Overall, I was a little confused by the article. I wasn't quite sure what was meant by the "Game of School". The part that I found interesting and quite relevant was in the very beginning when the author talks about teachers who try to motivate their students and teachers who don't try and just pass their students along get the same bonuses and make the same wage. I've seen that happen way too many times in my school career, and I think it's absolutely ridiculous. I was also interested when the author brought up the point of standardized testing and how it fails to work because it doesn't cater to the individual student's needs. I completely agree with this statement. I think school systems nowadays are so generalized and tend to lump their student body into one category, rather than taking the time to figure out what works for the individual.
I think that the biggest indicator of being in the Game of School is the mood and mindset of teachers and students. Teachers go through the motion of teaching and students go through the motion of learning. Students do not want to answer questions or voice their opinions in class because they do not want it to seem like they care about the work. Teachers give students short-answer questions because it is easier for them to grade and takes less effort on their part. Even administrators can be guilty of playing the Game when they are only worried about teachers filling in their lesson plans but do not go to classrooms to see how and if they are implemented. Overall I think the biggest indicator of the Game is when "passionate teaching subsides and intense learning diminishes."
I think that many of us are guilty of playing the game of school. We are focused on getting through the day as painlessly and as fast as possible, and do not worry about what new information we are learning and what we are benefiting from it. We know what we need to do in order to get a passing grade in a class, and we give the bare minimum. We are worried about "getting along" and do not focus on real learning in the classroom. Teachers need to work harder to get students involved in class by making the subjects more interesting for them. We have to change our attitudes in order to stop playing the Game and it will improve our schools.
The game of school is all about getting around actually doing work. It talked about howstudents even first graders would try to take the easy wayout with their homework by asking the simplest questions on their reading so that they wouldn't have to read the entire story.
The problem with a lot of schools today is that a lot of teachers don't makelearning as interesting as it can be. In the beginning of the chapter they were saying that in the after school program they read the Whinny the Pooh out loud to the children they love it and ask a lot of inightful questions. But when the students have to read the stories themselves they lose interest and try to finish as quickly as possible.
Students don't try to think outside the box and go above ad beyond for projects and homework because they know they don't necessarily have to to get a good grade. They only do as much as they need to do to get the grade they want and teachers accept it.
I feel as though the "Game of School" should perhaps be changed to the "Game of Homework". I knew of any people in my high school who enjoyed learning for learning's sake and I myself have enjoyed many math classes in my education just for the fun of learning rather than trying to play the "Game of School" or just putting in enough effort to get a good grade. The way some of my teachers taught kept me interested in not only the material they were teaching but what was going to be taught next. I remember very much enjoying a World History course I took last year (especially when the topics were Japan and China). I never took that class nor my pre-calculus or calculus courses as just another 45 minutes to "get by". I thoroughly enjoyed learning the new material and did well because I was interested in the topics at hand. However, my interest tended to fade when homework was assigned which is why I would agree with the author's theory if it be applied to homework.
I really enjoyed reading "The Passionate Teacher." I really agreed with the statement that sometimes no one in schools "cares about what is going on intellectually or in the classroom." I think that this happens too often, for reasons like pressure on teachers to have their students pass standardized testing and a lack on parental involvement in their children's education. Also, the concept of "The Game of School" makes a lot of sense to me. I think that doing routine exercises and tasks that are "mindless" take away from the joy of learning for children. Children are in school usually 6 hours a day, and doing routine/boring tasks definitely makes learning seem like a chore. Something that stuck out to me is that teachers are likely to give out short answer questions (and I believe multiple choice as well) in order to save time. I disagree with having questions like these on tests because there is a very small amount of through thinking and understanding required. I believe that this is why so many students graduate prepared to succeed in college.
Robin Keller
The "Game of School" struck me as very wrong but also very true. I am guilty of playing the game myself and I know of countless others that play it as well. It is known that the game is being played because the lack of actual learning compared to the time spent on learning. Everyone just plays along and does what they have to do as quickly and easily as possible without putting meaning behind it. This in turn, hurts learners in the long run. If everyone just barely scrapes by, time is wasted. Instead of creating a learning environment, the GOS in schools spends valuable time on the wrong things such as attendance, testing, etc. The knowledge of the Game of School should help schools change their methods of teaching in order to not allow players to cheat themselves or others from learning. They should learn which methods are more effective and keep students from entering the GOS.
The Game of School is a common thing to be seen around many schools, especially as a student. We see it all the time, people "helping others" by doing their work or by switching off on who does better in what subject or every other night someone does the other's work. Teachers also contribute to this sometimes when their attitudes start to change, or are negative, sometimes they don't care or there is something else getting in their way of teaching the students to the best of their abilities. there are many factors that can go wrong that affect the education of children
I personally felt when I read The Game of School, I was offended at first. Never had I ever looked at school and my education as a game. The way I imagined the author thinking of school as a game was as a game board, where each grade was an advancement space and your work you did was equivalent to the roll of a die. Of course I know that there are students who are just doing enough to get by, but I feel as if this article is based too much on those types of students, and not the students and teachers who see learning as an experience and their passion.
However, as I continued to read, I realized that indeed, sometimes teachers give out "busy work" as homework. Are they playing a game with us? Are they just doing what they are required to do? Or are they giving us tasks to further our education? I would not go as far as to suggest those children who work their way around their homework by doing group work after school as "players of the game," but more so students who are smart enough to manage their time and work. I see nothing wrong with sharing ideas and working together on homework assignments, especially if it is just an extension of what has been completed in class.
Trying to downplay education as a game offends me. Education is not a game, it sets you up for either a successful or unsuccessful life. Even though I read over the excerpt a few times, I did not understand his reasoning any better than the first time I read it. Too much opinion, not enough solution to his posed problem.
The game of school is an interesting essay which described some of my own feelings and observations towards school. The main point I found from the essay is that there are so many factors which negatively affect a students learning at school, the biggest one being that students fake learning and teachers fake teaching. I have experienced this to be true in some cases where teachers pass the time by grading homework in class rather than teaching, or make easy tests so they wont have to take as much time to grade them. This caused for less learning in class and less time to cover subjects and actually learn the information in class. The other side of this is some students don't put the effort into learning either because they want to act cool, and acting interested in school is not cool, or they try to take the easy way out. An example of this is being assigned homework in history class where there are short answers that require reading the chapter, but students will just skim the text to find the subject and be done with it. This does not promote learning the broad topic, rather it gives a small range of facts. This can be attributed to poor teaching ciriculum or unmotivated teachers and students.
This chapter really struck a chord with me, as I certainly "played the game" for much of my school years. However, I can say personally that a good teacher could make a difference. In classes where the teacher was engaging, asked difficult, analytical questions, and encouraged class discussions, I participated much more frequently, put more effort into my assignments, and could honestly say that I felt pride in my work. In other classes, the teachers seemed to encourage "the game." They would just tell us to show up on time, hand in our assignments when they were due, and don't be disruptive during the class. And that's what I would do, and nothing more. I would get an A+ in the class, but wouldn't actually learn anything. The real problem is the emphasis on tests/grades over actual learning. Anyone can cram the night before a test, memorize some terms, and get an A, but if you do that, you're not learning anything. But it's viewed as acceptable all the same.
The way one can see that the game of school is being played is limited striving, students doing the bare minimum, teachers and administrators accepting this as the way things will always be. this manifests it's self by reducing the drive to learn (something that we all have to varying degrees) that is diminished by the game of school when there is a lack of respect for learning for learning sake we lose this drive, weather it is students, teachers or admins causing this lose of respect we all suffer
What are the key indicators that the Game of School is being played?
How does the GOS influence your own view of school and learning?
What role do you think the GOS play in efforts to improve schools?
*note: "it can happen to the best of people, in the best of schools. in a lot of schools, it happens to almost everybody almost all the time"
The Greatest Obstacle We Face is one of the most interesting bits of literature I have ever read. I truly enjoyed it because, as a student, I really got a fresh perspective. Of course I always knew the "game of school" exists, but I never have considered myself a constant player, more like an occasional hobbyist. Some students are frequently playing it, and even some teachers like to join in. It is stated in the text that "when the Game of School is played frequently enough, and with enough people, the game becomes school. The artificial and superficial replaces what's authentic and purposeful in a lesson or curriculum." At this point, the game of school is destructive to the education system because neither the students nor the teachers are taking school seriously enough. Only when real, passionate instructors and students exist can
...From Jason...
I think the game of school is a necessary part of the education system. It's when it becomes the education system that problems arise. Students need a small amount of leniency and it's to be expected that they won't perform at maximum capacity all of the time. With that being said, teachers need to recognize this and implement a learning regiment that takes this factor into account. The Game of School will always be present, but there are ways to alter it. Ways such as making classtime more engaging and not simply just "going through the motions". There must be effort of both sides by the teachers and the students.
...From Kayla...
...From Chloe...
...From Ruqayya...
I think that many of us are guilty of playing the game of school. We are focused on getting through the day as painlessly and as fast as possible, and do not worry about what new information we are learning and what we are benefiting from it. We know what we need to do in order to get a passing grade in a class, and we give the bare minimum. We are worried about "getting along" and do not focus on real learning in the classroom. Teachers need to work harder to get students involved in class by making the subjects more interesting for them. We have to change our attitudes in order to stop playing the Game and it will improve our schools.
...From Claire...
The problem with a lot of schools today is that a lot of teachers don't makelearning as interesting as it can be. In the beginning of the chapter they were saying that in the after school program they read the Whinny the Pooh out loud to the children they love it and ask a lot of inightful questions. But when the students have to read the stories themselves they lose interest and try to finish as quickly as possible.
Students don't try to think outside the box and go above ad beyond for projects and homework because they know they don't necessarily have to to get a good grade. They only do as much as they need to do to get the grade they want and teachers accept it.
...From KyleH...
...From RachelJ...
...From Robin...
The "Game of School" struck me as very wrong but also very true. I am guilty of playing the game myself and I know of countless others that play it as well. It is known that the game is being played because the lack of actual learning compared to the time spent on learning. Everyone just plays along and does what they have to do as quickly and easily as possible without putting meaning behind it. This in turn, hurts learners in the long run. If everyone just barely scrapes by, time is wasted. Instead of creating a learning environment, the GOS in schools spends valuable time on the wrong things such as attendance, testing, etc. The knowledge of the Game of School should help schools change their methods of teaching in order to not allow players to cheat themselves or others from learning. They should learn which methods are more effective and keep students from entering the GOS.
...From Cynthia...
...From Sammy...
I personally felt when I read The Game of School, I was offended at first. Never had I ever looked at school and my education as a game. The way I imagined the author thinking of school as a game was as a game board, where each grade was an advancement space and your work you did was equivalent to the roll of a die. Of course I know that there are students who are just doing enough to get by, but I feel as if this article is based too much on those types of students, and not the students and teachers who see learning as an experience and their passion.
However, as I continued to read, I realized that indeed, sometimes teachers give out "busy work" as homework. Are they playing a game with us? Are they just doing what they are required to do? Or are they giving us tasks to further our education? I would not go as far as to suggest those children who work their way around their homework by doing group work after school as "players of the game," but more so students who are smart enough to manage their time and work. I see nothing wrong with sharing ideas and working together on homework assignments, especially if it is just an extension of what has been completed in class.
Trying to downplay education as a game offends me. Education is not a game, it sets you up for either a successful or unsuccessful life. Even though I read over the excerpt a few times, I did not understand his reasoning any better than the first time I read it. Too much opinion, not enough solution to his posed problem.
...From Matt...
...From RachelS...
...From KyleW...
Kyle Weinreich
The way one can see that the game of school is being played is limited striving, students doing the bare minimum, teachers and administrators accepting this as the way things will always be. this manifests it's self by reducing the drive to learn (something that we all have to varying degrees) that is diminished by the game of school when there is a lack of respect for learning for learning sake we lose this drive, weather it is students, teachers or admins causing this lose of respect we all suffer
...From Lauren...
*note: "it can happen to the best of people, in the best of schools. in a lot of schools, it happens to almost everybody almost all the time"
The Greatest Obstacle We Face is one of the most interesting bits of literature I have ever read. I truly enjoyed it because, as a student, I really got a fresh perspective. Of course I always knew the "game of school" exists, but I never have considered myself a constant player, more like an occasional hobbyist. Some students are frequently playing it, and even some teachers like to join in. It is stated in the text that "when the Game of School is played frequently enough, and with enough people, the game becomes school. The artificial and superficial replaces what's authentic and purposeful in a lesson or curriculum." At this point, the game of school is destructive to the education system because neither the students nor the teachers are taking school seriously enough. Only when real, passionate instructors and students exist can